Hitting blu-ray and video today from Warner Brothers is the box office sensation Wonder Woman, the long overdue arrival of Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) to the big screen. Wowing in the theatre, the Amazon comes home with a gorgeous blu-ray that looks and sounds fantastic and puts your home theatre through its paces. Loved by…
Tag: adaptation
The Spy Who Came in From the Cold (1965) – Martin Ritt
Richard Burton turns in a solid, and believable performance in this adaptation of John le Carre’s classic thriller novel. The Spy Who Came in From the Cold is the next recommendation from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book following my screening of Dr. Strangelove. Burton is Alec Leamas, a spy in charge…
Ghost in the Shell (2017) – Rupert Sanders
Paramount Pictures’ live action adaptation of the classic anime, Ghost in the Shell, hits blu-ray and DVD today. I am going to eschew any discussion of the white-washing controversy surrounding the film’s production, and just focus on the movie itself. I love the original anime, and constantly saw it as kin to the cinematic version…
Mamma Mia! (2008) – Phylida Lloyd
The final recommendation for my screening of Jailhouse Rock for the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film is the beloved stage musical, Mamma Mia! Using the catchy tunes penned by cherished pop group, ABBA, the tale is a but of a post-modern Philadelphia Story as a young woman, Sophie (Amanda Seyfried) is on the…
Under the Dome: The Complete Series
Releasing today from Paramount Pictures and CBS DVD is The Complete Series of the television adaptation of Stephen King’s massive novel, Under the Dome. The series features both King and Steven Spielberg as executive producers with Brian K. Vaughan as showrunner. Over the course of 38 episodes we get to know the folks of Chester’s…
Show Boat (1936) – James Whale
The recommendations from the Great Movies – 100 Years of Film book for my screening of Oklahoma! gets underway with the 1936 adaptation of the Hammerstein stage musical, Show Boat. Directed by James Whale, who, one year previous, directed the iconic Bride of Frankenstein, the tale follows a young woman, Magnolia aka Nola (Irene Dunne)…
Battlefield Earth (2000) – Roger Christian
Sometimes, bad is bad. And this stop with the Sci-Fi Chronicles Book demonstrates how bad. There is absolutely nothing redeeming about this film, and it’s a wonder that any of those involved walked away with the semblance of a career. Based on L. Ron Hubbard’s titanic novel, the film stars John Travolta, Forest Whitaker, and…
The Shannara Chronicles: Season 1
Fantasy television series always have a hard time proving themselves on television. For every Game of Thrones or Xena: Warrior Princess, there’s a Wizards and Warriors or Covington Cross. While television viewers are happy to welcome superheroes and aliens into their living rooms on weekly basis, elves, dwarves and trolls have had a tougher time…
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (2005) -Garth Jennings
Grab your towel and Don’t Panic! Douglas Adam’s classic tale gets a big screen adaptation, of his book/screenplay, which had previously been so well used by the BBC as a miniseries, and before that a radio programme. There are things that work in this version, and things that don’t, but the effort is there to…
Ender’s Game (2013) – Gavin Hood
No matter what you think of Orson Scott Card’s personal politics, there is no denying that Ender’s Game is a solid, strong and involving novel. It shouldn’t have taken as long as it did for a film adaptation for this one to come along, but it finally did in 2013, and is my next stop…
The Mind Reels 